The consequences of cutting back on opioid prescriptions

Efforts to limit opioid prescriptions are leading some patients to use more dangerous drugs.

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Efforts to limit opioid prescriptions are leading some patients to use more dangerous drugs. (Bigstock)

Efforts to limit opioid prescriptions are leading some patients to use more dangerous drugs. (Bigstock)

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To fight the drug epidemic, public health officials, doctors, and pharmaceutical companies have been working to limit opioid prescriptions. WHYY’s Nina Feldman explains why that’s leading some patients to use more dangerous drugs — putting them at a higher risk of contracting diseases like Hepatitis C and HIV.

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